Applicant hereby claims the benefit of the filing date May 17, 1999 of prior application Ser. No. 09/313,867.
The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government of the United States of America for governmental purposes without the payment of any royalties thereon or therefor.
Some of the methods currently used to anchor an object to the earth rely on driving a small rod into the substrate. External manual forces or explosives have been used to drive rod-like structural elements sufficiently to embed them. In either case, frictional forces acting along the length of the rods have been the main forces that retain them in the earthen substrate.
Another soil anchor, called the Manta Soil Anchor by Form Engineering of Dougiasville (Atlanta), Ga. 30135 has a plate mechanically, hydraulically, or pneumatically driven into the earthen substrate via a first rod. The first rod is withdrawn, and another rod or line attached to a pinned joint on the plate rotates the plate about the pinned joint so that the plate lies perpendicular where the first rod was. Apparently, considerable mechanical, hydraulic, or pneumatic force must be expended by a driving mechanism connected to the first rod to drive the plate into the earth in one direction, and considerable force must be exerted in the opposite direction by the mechanism or another machine to rotate the plate. These oppositely directed forces are likely to be of such magnitude that they may cause failure along the linkage and joint structure at the plate. In addition, the relatively cumbersome paraphernalia associated with this device is likely to interfere with remote or delayed insertion in unobtrusive or covert applications. Also, the anchoring forces that are characteristic of this type of anchor system are low in magnitude.
Thus, in accordance with this inventive concept, a need has been recognized in the state of the art for an anchor explosively propelling a penetrator having folded petal-shaped sections into the earth and extending the sections into a fan-shaped structure to secure a remotely extending cable.
The present invention provides a system for anchoring a cable. A penetrator has a plurality of petal-shaped sections extending outwardly from a central section. A propellant in a tubular shell is ignited by a squib and an initiator to propel the penetrator into the earth. A spring actuated spool is coupled to the cable and has cables that are each connected to a different one of the petal-shaped sections to arrest penetration and to spread the petal-shaped sections to extend outwardly.
An object of the invention is to provide an anchor explosively propelled into the earth to secure a remotely extending cable.
Another object of the invention is to provide an anchor using an electrically initiated propellant to drive itself into the earth instead of mechanical force.
Another object of the invention is to provide an anchor having a penetrator that laterally extends after it has been explosively propelled into the earth to increase holding capabilities.
Another object of the invention is to provide an anchor remotely initiated from a safe distance on land and underwater to, through, and beyond the surfzone.
Another object of the invention is to provide an anchor using far greater surface area in the earthen substrate to anchor itself to safely withstand greater tensile forces.
Another object of the invention provides a self-contained anchor having only lead wire(s) extending from it to electrically activate an initiator and/or squib.
These and other objects of the invention will become more readily apparent from the ensuing specification when taken in conjunction with the appended claims.